Stuart's Nerdy Girlfriend
by Tari J. Deitrich
Summary: Stuart Bloom was a lonely, comic-book store owner. Until he attended Who Con and met a cute, nerdy girl named Abby. Abby seems like the perfect girlfriend. Until Stuart realizes she's hiding a big secret. A secret that could tear their relationship apart. Relationship pairings: PennyxLeonard, SheldonxAmy, HowardxBernadette, StuartxOC
1. Chapter 1

_Hideeho!  
'Tis I, Tari. I know it's been a while since you've heard from me but I haven't really been writing much since moving out of my parents house. I've been spending A LOT of time watching movies and TV shows online, working on segments with my cowriter and best friend, Kawaii Stella, and helping my roommate, Haley Phoenix, with her stories. She's asked me to advertise her work for fictionpress so, here goes._

HP is working on an adult-only book series called The Seven Cities. She's still figuring shit out and ironing out the kinks in her ideas, but she's getting there. First book is called Camthaeran. She also has a visitor's guide available but that's more for her benefit than yours. Go check it out.

 _Okay, so this is a story I started writing back in April because I was binge-watching_ _The Big Bang Theory._ _I felt sorry for Stuart Bloom and thought he should have a special someone. And that's where this all started._

 _Keep in mind, I won't be updating very often as is with all my other stuff. Please don't rush me. I don't get as many ideas with this as I would like so I just have to put it together as the come. Keep Calm._

 _Without further ado, please enjoy this first chapter of_ _Stuart's Nerdy Girlfriend._

* * *

Chapter One

It was a warm day in Pasadena, CA when the guys walked into the Comic Book Store to peruse the selection of books for ones they didn't have. As usual, Stuart was moving around the store, checking merchandise and answering questions.

Yup, just a normal day in Pasadena for the guys.

But all that changed when a pint-sized, petite ninja walked in.

The ninja was dressed in black with a hood drawn up over its hood and a mask covering the lower half of its face. Red, cloth gauntlets and bracers were strapped to its arms and legs by black, elastic bands and a red, cloth, chest piece hung from its shoulders, covering its front and back and held together by a ribbon pretending to be a belt. Across its back hung two fake katanas hanging in a plastic backpack with each handle sticking out over its shoulders and the blades exposed by its hips. It's fingernails were painted black with red tips and its hands were covered in homemade black, fingerless gloves.

All activities in the store ceased when this stranger walked in. _Who was this weirdo?_ They all wondered.

Just then, Stuart smiled as though recognizing this ninja, placed his clipboard down on a stack of comic books, and approached.

"Hey, honey." he said, pulling the ninja into his arms.

The ninja reached up with one hand and pulled its mask down revealing the face of a young woman with freckles and pockmarks on her cheeks, a button nose, and large eyes. Red make-up was painted on the corners of her mouth.

"Hey, sweetie." she said, smiling up at him.

Stuart's eyes seemed to twinkle as he bent his head to give her a kiss. The girl kissed him back for a few seconds only to pull away.

"Sorry." she said, spitting out a set of vampire teeth. "They're so comfy, I forget they're in there."

Stuart grinned and gave her another kiss.

The gang looked at each other, confused now, then looked at Stuart and the ninja.

"Hey, Stuart, you wanna introduce us to your girlfriend?" one of them asked.

Stuart broke the kiss and "Oh, right. This is Abby. Abby, these are my friends, Leonard Hofstadter, Sheldon Cooper, Rajesh Koothrappali, and Howard Wolowitz."

"Pleasure." said Abby. She smiled and the red dye on the corners of her mouth stretched. She held out a hand to each of them and only Sheldon refrained from shaking her hand. "Don't like germs?" Abby asked him.

"No." Sheldon said. "For all I know, you could be carrying a disease which could kill me."

"Fair enough." Abby said, letting her hand drop to her side.

"So, what are you supposed to be?" asked Howard.

"A vampire ninja." said Stuart.

"A what?" the guys asked.

"A vampire ninja." Abby repeated. "A vampire who became a ninja. It's something I created when I was younger and it's been sticking with me ever since."

"Okay." said Raj. He seemed skeptical but looked like he kind of liked this girl.

"That doesn't seem likely." said Sheldon. "If you were a vampire, how are you able to be out in sunlight without catching fire?"

"I don't like to stereotype." said Abby. "And, besides, a ninja is covered from head to toe anyway, so what does it matter?"

"Point taken." said Sheldon.

"Anyway, I would love to stay and chat but I just wanted to see Stuart." Abby said before they could ask her any more question. She kissed Stuart again and whispered something about seeing him later before strolling out.

Everyone in the store watched her go, including Stuart whose eyes were twinkling.

"That's right." he said to the gathering. "I've got a girlfriend."

* * *

 _What'd you think? Please Review!_


	2. Chapter 2

_Hello, everyone! Thanks for waiting. I know it's been a few days since my last update, but I couldn't get this chapter out of my head and just had to write it until it was "perfect"._

 _Thanks to everyone who's read the first chapter. And a special thanks to those who reviewed and followed this story so far. It won't be long before we get to the good stuff, I promise._

 _So, here's the next chapter of Stuart's Nerdy Girlfriend._

 _As usual, R &R._

* * *

Chapter Two

Since the strange encounter with the even stranger, petite, young woman Stuart called his girlfriend, the guys hadn't seen much of their shop-owner friend. Which is saying a lot since they hardly ever saw him outside the shop anyway. However, there was good reason for that. Stuart spent much of his spare time being with Abby.

As per their routine, the guys always reported to the comic book store on Wednesdays. And, every Wednesday since meeting Abby, they could see a definite change in Stuart's mood and behavior. Stuart seemed lighter on his feet and happier. His jokes became funnier toward his patrons. But, whenever Abby came to visit the store, Stuart's mood would change from happy to extremely excited. And the customers' encounters with her made them question her sanity.

Aside from knowing her name and that she was Stuart's girlfriend, Stuart's friends knew little about her. And Abby never came to the store dressed in regular clothes. After much debate on whether or not Abby was poking fun at the nerds there, Stuart put everyone's fears and hard feelings to rest by explaining that she is a nerd who just loves to cosplay. Even if her costumes were slightly outrageous.

A week after meeting Abby in her vampire ninja costume, Abby showed up in a hand-crocheted Mewtwo costume carrying a pair of purple, rubber balls with colored LEDs that blinked whenever the balls were squeezed or bounced together. Since Abby was only there to visit Stuart, the only question they were able to ask her what the balls were and she explained she had picked them up at a country restaurant because she thought they would go great with the Pokémon costume she was making. She went on to explain she wanted something that would somehow resemble Mewtwo's "blue beam".

While in that costume, Stuart politely excused himself to finish his business hour rounds and Abby stood behind the register.

"Are you sure you wanna let her work with your money?" asked a tubby patron whom everyone referred to as "Captain Sweatpants".

Stuart gave Captain Sweatpants a serious look. "She's a cashier at a gas station. Manning a register isn't a big deal."

Now everyone was wondering precisely which gas station she was working at. After asking her, Abby told them she works at a Circle K.

A week later, Abby showed up in another ninja costume. This one had a decorative, cloth breast plate that hung from her shoulders and down her front and back. She wore a sword across her back, "hidden knives" hung in their "hidden" state from her belt by a cord by an "assassin's blade". Abby very pleasantly showed them the assassin's blade (which opened into four, plastic blades at the touch of a button), before showing them her hidden knives and how her sword went from having one blade, to two just by making the hilt twist. In this costume, she wandered about the store before settling on a TARDIS light which she paid for despite Stuart telling her he would be happy to buy it for her.

Another week passed before they saw her again. This time, she was wearing a female viking costume which included a blonde wig, headband, a dress, furry gauntlets and bracers, boots, and a furry, hooded cape. She carried a foam ax with her and had a plastic dragon perched on her shoulder. When asked about it, she said she was trying to be Astrid from _How to Train Your Dragon_. While wearing this costume, she wandered about the store filling holes with comic books, videos, and toys from the stockroom. Her dragon was left perched on the checkout counter watching over the register with her ax nearby.

The next week, Abby didn't show up. But that didn't disturb Stuart's mood. Even so, the guys decided to include their sometimes-forgotten friend in one of their plans.

"Hey, Stuart, we're planning on heading to the movies to see the Star Wars Special Edition playing on the big screen. You wanna come?" Raj asked.

"Yeah. You can bring Abby with you if you want. Share a bucket of popcorn and hold hands." Howard suggested.

Stuart shook his head; pleased, though, that he was they were at least thinking about him. His smile grew bigger.

"No, no, thank you." he said. "I've actually got plans tonight. I'm going to my girlfriend's house for dinner. But you guy can come if you want. It's potluck."

"Are you sure you're girlfriend won't mind?" asked Leonard.

"Naw. Abby's a great gal. She doesn't mind having friends over. On a day off, she doesn't mind having the company of a few people." Stuart answered.

"Alright. I guess we could bring something over." said Howard.

"Okay." Stuart scribbled something on a few sheets of paper and gave it to them. "Here's her address. Be warned, though, don't piss her off. Otherwise, she'll give you a look that will make you think she's about to devour your soul."

It was almost six by the time gang met at Sheldon and Leonard's apartment. After some debate about inviting their girlfriends to dinner at Abby's, Sheldon, Leonard, and Howard called up their honeys and learned Penny, Bernadette, and Amy were having a girls' night full of bar-hopping. Being a suspicious, little thing that she was, Bernadette warned Howard against any and all funny business before giving him the okay. Amy was not at all worried about Sheldon. And Penny just told Leonard to have a good time.

Even though the rest of their night was starting to go smoothly and all their precooked meals ready to go, Sheldon was not cooperating. Though, his reason for not wanting to go to Abby's was completely idiotic in the eyes of his friends.

"But it's Halo Night!" Sheldon said, childishly. "We can't ditch Halo Night!"

"Sheldon, it'll be fine." Leonard said, making sure the lid of his macaroni salad container was firmly sealed. "We can have Halo Night next week."

"Yeah, Dude. We're just going to hang out with Stuart and his girlfriend." Raj said.

That did not seem to pacify Sheldon, though, who tried reasoning with them that abandoning Halo Night would set off his routine and would through the rest of his week into chaos.

"If it means that much to you, then we'll bring the Xbox and controllers with us." Howard suggested.

"What if Abby doesn't have a big enough screen?! What if she doesn't have a TV!?" Sheldon said. "We should take the TV with us."

"No. We're not taking the TV with us." Leonard said. "Just put everything you need in a box and we'll go."

"Fine." Sheldon said.

With that, he briskly set about locating a box large enough to store the cables, Xbox, controllers, and the game. When he was satisfied he had collected all the necessities to continue their game night, he led the rest of his friends down the four flights of stairs to Howard's car (which was the largest of all of the vehicles).

Sheldon preferred to ride shotgun as riding in the backseat did not allow much room for his long legs. On top of that, he also demanded that the game box stay up front with him. Instead of fighting with him over it, they just allowed it, but made him hold Howard's dish of tzimmes1 while Howard manned the wheel. Leonard and Raj sat in the backseat with former holding his macaroni salad and the latter holding his rajma-chawal2. With everything settled, they drove eight blocks to Abby's apartment complex and parked. From there, they saw Stuart who was leaning against the wall waiting for them.

Stuart looked relieved to see four of the people he saw as friends (considering all the Friend-and-Family discounts he'd given them over the years) and was starting to think they weren't coming. That maybe they had decided watching the Star Wars Special Edition trilogy was more important than him. He gave them his usual, awkward smile as he watched them get out of Howard's car, gather their things, and approach.

"Thanks for coming." Stuart said.

"No problem." Leonard said. "We're really interested in seeing the real Abby."

"And not some girl who dresses in outlandish costumes all the time." Sheldon muttered to Howard but Leonard heard him.

"Will you- You know what? Yes. We do want to see the real Abby outside of her costumes." Leonard said.

"It's just her thing." Stuart said, shrugging. "She's proud of being a nerd and likes to prove it to everyone."

"We don't even really know what her real hair color is, dude." Raj said.

"Well, she's promised to lay off the costumes tonight." Stuart said. "She's going au naturel tonight while she makes a dish of her own invention."

The guys looked uncomfortable. _What kind of weird food is she preparing?_ They wondered.

"It's nothing weird. In fact, it's actually a good idea." Stuart added, seeing their faces. "Come on. I'll take you to her."

Stuart led them inside and pushed the up button on the elevator. As they stepped in, Stuart happened to glance at the box Sheldon was holding.

"You know, Abby has a Wii, an Xbox, and a PlayStation, right?" he said.

"You're kidding." Sheldon said.

"No. She's inherited the Wii from her grandfather, bought the Xbox One when it came out in stores, and found a PlayStation at a garage sale. If you really wanted to play some games, all you had to do was bring the games you wanted and she would've let you play."

"We'll remember that, next time." Leonard said.

"Whoa, Dude. Let's just see how tonight goes first." Raj said.

"Exactly." Howard added.

"Don't worry." Stuart said. "I think you'll like her."

The elevator dinged and let them off at the fourth floor. Again, Stuart took the lead—looking quite pleased with himself for knowing the way when his friends didn't—and stopped outside the sixteenth apartment. Then, Stuart opened the door.

"Honey! We're here!" he announced.

"Rroof! Baroof-roof!" said a massive rottweiler that came at them from around a corner.

"Nope!" Sheldon said as he took off for the elevator, clutching his precious gaming equipment to his chest.

* * *

1A Jewish side dish that consists generally of cooked vegetables or fruits, sometimes with meat added. The most popular vegetable is the carrot ( _mehren tzimes_ ), which is sliced. Turnips were also used for tzimmes, particularly in Lithuania. In southern Russia, Galicia, and Romania tzimmes was made of pears, apples, figs, prunes or plums ( _floymn tzimes_ ).

2An Indian dish made of curried red kidney beans with steamed rice

* * *

 _I'm not sure I did this right or kept anyone in character. If I'm missing something, somewhere, please let me know._


	3. Chapter 3

_Hello, everyone! Thanks for waiting. I know it's been more than a week since I last updated. I do apologize. I've been working out the kinks in this chapter for about that long. It's a little bit longer than I cared for, but I couldn't figure out where to cut it off. So, it is what it is._

 _Thanks to everyone who's read the first chapter. And a special thanks to those who reviewed and followed this story so far. Very special thanks to those of you who marked this story in their favorites._

 _I forgot to clarify the last couple of chapters. Here's my disclaimer.  
 **I do not own The Big Bang Theory franchise, it's characters, or anything associated with the show. Only original characters are mine.**  
_

 _So, here's the next chapter of Stuart's Nerdy Girlfriend._

 _As usual, R &R._

* * *

Chapter Three

The rottweiler stopped in the doorway and wagged its nub of a tail vigorously back and forth.

"Hey, Demon." Stuart said, bending down so he could pet the German dog's face. The dog's reaction to Stuart's attention was by licking his face.

"Sheldon! It's okay! Come back here!" Leonard said.

"You must be joking! Do you _see_ the size of that thing!?" Sheldon answered, frantically pressing the down button.

"Really, Sheldon. You can come back. Demon's-" Stuart began.

"DEMON! YOU CALL THAT THING DEMON!" Sheldon wailed. "DEMON IS RIGHT! IT'S A MONSTROSITY!"

"It's just the name the shelter gave him. The worst he'll do is lick you to death and sit on your feet."

Raj shifted his plate of food to one arm and held out a fist to the dog named Demon. Demon sniffed at Raj's hand before licking his knuckles.

"Aww! He's so nice!" the Indian boy said.

"He usually is." Stuart said. "Most rotts are docile and friendly and Demon is no exception."

"Come on, Sheldon." Leonard said. "I'm sure Demon won't hurt you." Sheldon remained where he was and Leonard sighed. "I'm really sorry about this. Sheldon is afraid of big dogs."

"Oh. Well, if it makes you feel any better, I'll give him a bone to chew on while you guys are here. He'll be laying in a corner eating so he won't bother you."

Sheldon hesitated; watching Demon move from person to person while sniffing at their clothes and shoes.

"Come on, Sheldon. It'll be fine." Leonard said, going in. Everyone followed him in with Demon squeezing between them and the doorway.

With everyone in the apartment, Stuart took the dishes to the attached kitchen area and they heard the sounds of stirring. A petite, brunette stood at the stove and mixed what looked like spaghetti and diced tomatoes and peppers in a counter top skillet. Then, she moved to the stove and began sauteing some mushrooms in a one skillet, and browning Italian sausage in another.

"Everyone settle in." Abby said. "I'll be done with this in a moment."

While she worked on her cooking, Sheldon edged closer to the couch and sat down while watching Demon and the others looked around the room. Stuart returned from the kitchen and held a rawhide chew out to Demon.

"Go lay down." he told the rottweiler.

Demon sniffed at the chew, gently took it from Stuart's hand, and went over to a large, soft bed in the corner of the room.

The living room was mildly furnished with a couch, coffee table, an arm chair, and two saucer chairs. A few beanbag chairs were piled in a corner. An IBM ThinkPad laptop sat dormant on the coffee table. A few bookshelves stood against the wall behind the couch and not only contained books on a variety of different subjects, but was also decorated with small, toy dragons, a lava lamp, anime figurines, and framed pictures.

A dining area was joined with the living room complete with a dark-stained mahogany table and matching chairs. The table was already set with eating utensils and cups and plates painted with hummingbirds and flowers. All around the room, framed posters and paintings decorated the wall. There were two paintings featuring rabbits, two posters depicting dragons, a Doctor Who poster, a phoenix poster, a few movie poster featuring _How to Train Your Dragon_ , _Kung-Fu Panda_ , and _The Hobbit_.

A large, flat-screen TV sat turned off in an entertainment center which also housed a DVD-VHS combo player, DVD's and video cassettes arranged by genre and company, and three gaming platforms. When Howard opened one of the drawers, he saw controllers and games.

"Wow, Abby. Got a thing for movies?" said the Jew, when he saw the collection of movies in the entertainment center's cabinets.

"I don't get out much." Abby said from the kitchen as she poured her concoction into a bowl. "I spend more time watching television and movies when I'm not working or hanging out with Stewie."

Stuart grinned and joined his girlfriend in the kitchen where he retrieved a few serving dishes from the overhead cabinet for her.

"Do you mind if we start on our Halo game before dinner?" Leonard asked.

"You can get it ready, but I'll be done in another minute or two." Abby said. "You'll have to hook up the Xbox to the TV, though."

"Okay." said Leonard.

"It's a little tricky. Are you going to be okay doing it?" Abby said.

"You realize you're talking to a NASA robotics engineer and an astrophysicist, right?" said Howard.

"Right. And masculinity has nothing to do with it." Abby said sarcastically, stepping away from her cooking to smirk at them.

"Maybe just a little." Leonard admitted

While Howard and Raj worked on disconnecting the PlayStation, Leonard took a seat in an armchair only to jump up again when he heard a squeal. Spinning around, he saw a white, furry, snake-looking thing with legs which stared at him through dark, beady eyes, and hissed at him.

Abby came out of the kitchen carrying a serving tray. "Oh, good! You found Fredmeister! I wonder where he disappeared to."

"Yeah. Leonard sat on him." Raj said.

"Poor baby." Abby said. "But, that's what he gets for hiding in the chair."

"He's always doing that." Stuart said, scooping up the ferret. "Whenever he's loose in the apartment, he's always finding a place to hide."

"Is his name really Fredmeister?" Howard asked.

"It's actually Prince Frederick, Duke Lord Magistrate of Ferreton." Abby said, cheerfully. "Freddie and Fredmeister for short. I picked him up at a pet store in Nevada and he's been with me ever since."

Sheldon turned his gaze away from Demon and smiled with amusement. "Freddie the Ferret. How quaint. The use of the letter f in ferret to choose a name like Freddie."

"Don't forget the words Prince, Duke, Lord, and Magistrate." Raj said.

"You realize those are all titles of royalty, right?" Howard said.

"You're point?" Abby said, dangerously.

"Well, you're being redundant, for one thing." said Sheldon. "For another thing, no one could be a Duke, Lord, Magistrate, and Prince of anywhere. Much less a place called 'Ferreton'."

Abby fixed him with a stare. "When I named him, I wasn't really thinking too much and I just randomly picked a few things off the top of my head. Prince Frederick, Duke Lord Magistrate of Ferreton just stuck."

"At least Demon and Radar have simple names." Stuart said.

"Demon already had a name that fit him." Abby said. "And as for Radar . . . I was watching M*A*S*H when I named her and it worked."

"Who's Radar?" Leonard asked.

"My rabbit." Abby answered. "When Stuart said he was bringing his friends and I'm not used to having so many visitors, I thought it best if Radar stayed in my bed room for a while. I can show her to you after dinner, though."

The guys agreed that would be fine.

"So, how are we eating tonight?" said Raj. "At the table or at the coffee table?"

"I usually eat at the coffee table while Netflix is playing. But, it's guests' choice tonight." Abby said.

"Table." Leonard said.

"Table." Raj agreed.

"Table." said Howard.

Sheldon sighed. "Fine. Table."

"Table it is." Stuart said. "Let me put Freddie back in his cage and we'll eat."

"Wash your hands first." Sheldon said. "Ferrets carry diseases which no one wants to digest."

"Actually, ferrets are very clean." Abby said.

"And she wipes him down every night with a damp cloth and trims his nails sometimes." Stuart added.

"And brushes his teeth. He's a proper little prince, after all."

"But, I'll wash my hands anyway, since I've also been petting the dog and handling dog treats."

"Thank you." said Sheldon.

With dinner over, everyone sat on the couch while Abby cleaned up; Demon following her every move in hopes of getting scraps. Stuart jumped up quickly to help her; giving her cheek a kiss as he went. Abby blushed and smiled at him. The look in her reddish-brown eyes showed great affection for him. And Stuart's friends were pleased that he had a woman like her.

As Abby picked up all of the plates from the coffee table at which they had been dining, Howard decided to make polite conversation.

"So, Abby, where are you from?" he asked.

Abby flicked a piece of uneaten meat at the burly rottweiler while she gave her answer. "Ohio. Almost in the middle."

"That means you're in the snow belt." Sheldon said.

"Unfortunately, it does." Abby answered.

"What's it like?" Raj asked.

Abby thought about her answer while she scraped the gross remains of food into the disposal and rinsed off the plates. "Snowy. And cold." she said, smartly.

"How bad are the winters?" Howard asked.

"We can get snow and ice in late October, mid November, or early December. On occasion, sometimes, we don't get much snow at all. The last three months of the year are usually okay. Not too much happens. But once January shows up, then it's a cold, wet, ice bucket of suck. Temperatures can fall to nearly negative forty once windchill becomes a factor and the entire state starts wishing we could hibernate until Spring. Even then, there's no guarantee the snow will go away until late April or early May." Abby answered, shuddering when she remembered some of her least favorite winter days.

"Sounds terrible." Leonard said.

"It can be." Abby smirked while putting the dishes in the dishwasher. "We have a saying in Ohio. 'We have four season: Almost winter, winter, still winter, and road construction'."

Everyone but Sheldon laughed. Stuart laughed loudest of all, though it was obvious he had already heard this joke before from her.

"What did I tell you? Abby's a regular comedian." Stuart gushed.

Abby smiled at him and leaned against his arm.

"I don't understand. How is 'road construction' a season?" Sheldon said.

"You know, for a smart guy, you're not all that smart." Howard said. "It's not rocket science!"

"It's just what we call the warmer seasons like spring and summer." Abby explained, returning to her blue-green saucer chair and plopping down with Demon at her heels. "During the winter, road salt gets used a lot. And there's a lot of water in the soil underneath the asphalt-" at this, she paused to chuckle and mutter "ass-fault" under her breath.

"I know what causes potholes." Sheldon said, snobbishly.

Stuart opened Freddie's cage and put the ferret on his shoulder while casting a glare in Sheldon's direction. Sheldon saw the glare but couldn't figure out why Stuart was glaring at him. Clearly everyone continued to undermine just how much of a genius Sheldon was and that even a genius should know what a pothole was and what caused it. His ego swiftly decided the glare was more in Abby's direction than his, but that made him wonder why Stuart was looking at Abby like that.

"I'm sure you do." Abby said. "I'm also sure you know how potholes are taken care of."

"Of course." Sheldon said.

"Then, think about it."

Sheldon did think about it and it didn't take him long to understand. "Oh. I see! 'Road construction' takes place in the warmer seasons where they're fixing potholes and eliminating driving hazards." He let out his short, quiet "Heh heh" laugh.

Demon raised his head. His large, brown eyes stared at the lithe human with curiosity, having never heard a sound like that before. Sheldon looked down at Demon and his smile disappeared. He hadn't forgotten the rottie was still in the room and his cynophobia1 was sure to take over soon.

Raj leaned over and patted Demon's head. "Tell us about your hometown." he said.

"There's really not much to tell." Abby said. "It's the boonies, really. Too small for a police station, large enough for a fire station, post office, library, school, and park. There's a bar called 'Rainbow', several houses and apartments, small shops - some of which are closed, now - and a set of train tracks."

"Ooh, trains! I love trains!" Sheldon said.

"Then, you'll like this." Abby told him. "I didn't even live in the boonies. I lived in a valley five miles outside the boonies. Late at night, you can hear the trains going across the tracks and, if the air is still enough, it sounds like the train is going down the valley itself."

Sheldon smiled as he tried to imagine it.

"Did you go to school there?" Leonard asked.

"Everyday for thirteen years." Abby answered.

"What was your ranking?" Sheldon asked.

"Thirty-fifth out of forty-four."

Sheldon puffed himself up, feeling quite superior to her.

"I don't test well." Abby said as an excuse. "And I never wanted to be in the higher ranking spots in the class. I was quite fine where I was. Toward the end of the line-up."

"You never asserted yourself, then." Howard observed.

"Why would I? After thirteen years, all I wanted was my diploma so I could get out of that hellhole. I hated it. I was the shortest kid in my class. I got made fun of a lot because I'm a weirdo and a nerd and I was alone a lot because kids avoided me like the plague. I didn't make friends easily and the friends I did make only pretended to be my friend. One friend I did have wanted to be accepted by everyone in our class and she would distance herself from me at times." Abby said.

They all nodded. It was hard to be accepted as a nerd in school.

"You weren't given noogies?" Leonard said.

"Or swirlies?" Sheldon said.

"No. I didn't like to draw attention to myself. So, I was pretty much ignored." Abby said.

"Lucky." Howard mumbled.

"College education?" Raj asked.

"Two and a quarter years." Abby answered. "First in broadcasting, then undeclared, then psychology. After a while, I finally just gave up on the college scene."

Sheldon didn't seem pleased by the fact he was in the living room of a college drop-out.

"It's not for everyone." Stuart said.

"No. It isn't." Abby quietly agreed.

They talked for a while and compared and contrasted likes and dislikes. The guys learned that Abby enjoyed many of the same things they did and was relieved to learn she enjoyed Anime, Star Wars, Star Trek, Lord of the Rings, Marvel, some DC, Doctor Who, Harry Potter, Indiana Jones, and many others. She also openly admitted to Halloween being her favorite holiday and would spend half her paycheck at a costume store to go Trick-or-Treating in."

"Aren't you a little old for that?" Howard said.

"Technically, there's no age limit." Leonard said.

"And I look like a kid, so I can still get plenty of candy." Abby said, grinning.

They talked for a little while longer before Abby excused herself to check on Radar. While she was gone, Leonard excused himself to use the bathroom.

"It's down the hall, second door to your right." Stuart told him, pointing with one hand and stroking the ferret with the other.

"Thank you." Leonard said, heading that way.

On his way to the bathroom, Leonard passed Abby's room and saw the door was open a bit. He heard the unmistakable sound of heavy, pained breathing and a sniff. A pill bottle rattled. Curiosity got the better of the theoretical physicist and he knocked.

"Um, Abby?" he said, pushing the door open just a little bit more.

Abby, who was sitting on the bed holding an orange medicine bottle, looked up, terrified. "Leo!"

Leonard was startled by the look she was giving him. "I'm sorry. I didn't meant to intrude. I was just wondering if you were okay."

Abby didn't say anything. She looked scared.

"What's wrong?" Leonard said, stepping into the room.

"N-nothing." Abby answered. She attempted to open the bottle but it slipped out of her hand and clattered on her zebra-print rug toward him.

Leonard bent down and picked it up. Before handing it back to her, he looked it over. "Why are you taking Cozaar?" he asked.

She paled.

"Abby, do you have something you need to discuss?"

She shook her head.

"Abby, a doctor wouldn't prescribe you Cozaar unless they needed to."

She opened the bottle, dropped a pill in her palm, and swallowed it without water. "It's just . . . I don't want to talk about it."

Leonard took her tone to mean that was the end of discussion. "Alright." he said. "I'm sorry I intruded. I'll leave now. But, I gotta know. Does Stuart know you're on Cozaar?"

"No. And I rather he didn't find out." she plopped the bottle into a drawer and shut it.

"Why?"

"It's not something I like to discuss." Again, her tone begged him to drop it and Leonard was forced to oblige.

"Fine. Just, take care of yourself. Okay? Stuart's a good guy and he really likes you. I'm sure, whatever it is, he doesn't want to lose you." He watched her open Radar's cage, scoop out a small amount of food, and pour it in the rabbit's bowl.

"I know." she said, stroking Radar from nose to rump.

* * *

1Cynophobia- irrational fear of dogs

* * *

 _I'm not sure I did this right or kept anyone in character. If I'm missing something, somewhere, please let me know._


	4. Chapter 4

_Hello, everyone! Thanks for waiting. I know it's been more than a week since I last updated. I do apologize. However, I kinda just put this together for a couple of hours. It's a little shorter than I would've liked but I thought the ending of this chapter was too perfect. I had to stop there._

 _Thanks to everyone who's read the previous chapters. And a special thanks to those who reviewed and followed this story so far. Very special thanks to those of you who marked this story in their favorites._

 _ **I do not own The Big Bang Theory franchise, it's characters, or anything associated with the show. Only original characters are mine.**  
_

 _So, here's the next chapter of Stuart's Nerdy Girlfriend._

 _As usual, R &R._

* * *

Chapter Four

It wasn't long before Abby joined them in the living room, pushing a large, wire, cage on casters ahead of her.

"Is that Radar?" Raj asked, peeking into the cage at the small, brown rabbit now crouched in a corner near the water bottle.

"Yup. That's Miss Radar." Abby said. "I got her from a local breeder in Ohio. I was actually looking for a buck but the breeder only had this four-month-old doe she was willing to part with. So, I bought her."

Leonard, Raj, and Howard gave her strange looks.

"Buck is the term for a male in the family Leporidae, order of the Lagomorpha. The female of the species is called a doe." Sheldon said.

"You know a lot about rabbits." Abby said. "Not everyone gets the gender terms right away."

Sheldon gave her a look. "Please, that's elementary school education, right there." he said.

"I'm pretty sure not all elementary schools go over animal gender names." Stuart said.

"Maybe not, but I can also tell you that a baby rabbit is called a kitten or a kit." Sheldon said.

"Nice work, Sheldon." Abby told him.

She opened the top of the cage and reached in to stroke the rabbit's head. Radar flattened herself against the wire floor.

"You can try to pet her if you want. But, I have to warn you, she hasn't been socialized with many people and she's spooky with strangers. She might try to box, bite, or run. It's her defense." Abby cautioned. "Just don't let Freddie get to her."

"How does Demon deal with being around a rabbit?" Leonard asked.

"He's okay with her. He sometimes guards the cage at night." Abby answered.

"How does she feel about that?"

"Demon doesn't bother her, so she doesn't seem to mind. Besides, she was born on a farm with horses, cats, chickens, a goat, cows, and a couple dogs. Dogs don't really seem to bother her."

Raj slowly unlatched the top of the cage and reached in to pet Radar. Radar let out a few, loud, short squeaks as she watched Raj's hand get closer to her; her ears laying back. Without attacking, she fled for the underside of a shelf in the cage. Abby sighed and reached in to pull her out. With the rabbit cradled safely in her arms, she attempted to calm Radar by stroking her from head to rump before allowing Raj to touch her.

"She's very soft." Raj said.

"She's a mini rex. It's a soft coated breed of rabbit." Abby explained.

"I assume that by mini rex, there's also other kinds of rexes." Leonard said.

"Yes. There's standard rexes and mini rexes. Standard rexes get about ten pounds, and mini rexes get to four pounds."

"And what makes her a rex?" Howard asked.

"It's the fur. The hair has a cottony appearance to it and the feel of it can be compared to velvet." Abby grinned. "I like to call her fur 'a cloud of fluff'."

The guys grinned but Sheldon seemed more interested in getting into his Halo game. After protesting that they were losing valuable Halo time, his friends joined him with the wireless controllers and started their missions.

Abby put Radar back in the cage, latched the lid, and went back to her cushy spot in her saucer chair with Stuart sitting next to her. She pulled her laptop in her lap and began cruising the internet. Stuart took out his phone and began playing a game. All this took place for the rest of the night.

When it was time to go, the guys gathered their dishes, thanked Abby for having them over, and headed out the door. Then, Howard turned around.

"What is your recipe for that spaghetti thing you made?" he asked.

"It's really easy." Abby said. "You just make a pot of spaghetti until it's soft. While that's cooking, heat up a skillet and heat up some chunky, tomato soup. When the spaghetti is done, strain it, and dump the noodles into the skillet, stir it around until it's done."

"Okay. Good to know."

"Mushrooms and sausage are optional. I like to make the sausage to put in during the stirring process. Mushrooms aren't my favorite fungus. I just make those in case someone else might want them. And Parmesan cheese is a great topping to go with it my spaghetti stir-fry."

Howard thanked her again and headed out with his friends. Demon woofing at them from the doorway and wagging his tail. With the visitors gone, Stuart put Freddie back in his cage and secured the latch before turning to his girlfriend.

"Do you have to go?" Abby asked him.

Stuart considered it. "I have to open the store in the morning." he said.

"That doesn't mean you can't stay the night." she reasoned.

Stuart thought about it again. He did like the idea of staying the night with his honey. Admittedly, he kept a bag of clothes in the trunk of his car and a toothbrush in her bathroom.

"Why not?" he said.

Abby grinned and hugged him; closing her eyes as he kissed her on the cheek.

* * *

 _I'm not sure I did this right or kept anyone in character. If I'm missing something, somewhere, please let me know._


	5. Chapter 5

_Hello, everyone! I know it's been a long wait. According to this, it's been about 88 days since my last update. I do apologize for that but thing have come up. New computer (because the old one just broke on me), Halloween, working on future chapters for a series I've been working on, and I just joined a new DnD group via invitation from a frequent customer I have at my job._

 _That reminds me, has anyone ever used or considered using DnD die to write their stories? I know some people use prayer or Tarot cards to help them with scenes. I was just asking for a friend._

 _Thanks to everyone who's read the previous chapters. And a special thanks to those who reviewed and followed this story so far. Very special thanks to those of you who marked this story in their favorites._

 _ **I do not own The Big Bang Theory franchise, it's characters, or anything associated with the show. Only original characters are mine.**  
_

 _So, here's the next chapter of Stuart's Nerdy Girlfriend._

 _As usual, R &R._

* * *

Chapter Five

Stuart awoke to a bright, sunny sky. He stretched and reached out to Abby only to discover she wasn't there. Grunting, he got up, scratched his head and went to find her.

Abby was sitting on the patio with a Sudoku book open in front of her. A dirty plate and fork placed in the middle of the plastic table. Her cell phone quietly blared Backstreet Boys. Demon lay at her feet. The rottweiler lifted his head and woofed at Stuart in greeting, making Abby look up.

"Hey, Honey." she said.

"Hey." Stuart said, smiling at her.

"How did you sleep?"

"Better with you there."

His response seemed to make Abby very happy.

"Did you leave me any breakfast?" he asked her, nodding to the empty plate.

"It's in the microwave." she said.

Stuart kept a cheerful smile as he went to get his breakfast. It was still warm, suggesting it hadn't been long since she made it. He took the plate, snagged a fork from the drawer, and went to join her on the patio; sitting directly across from her.

Abby stretched out until she was reclining in the chair, her eyes still on her book, and playfully placed her bare feet on his knees. Stuart pretended not to notice. He had to admit, though, he did like that feeling.

He slowly ate his breakfast while sneaking bits of egg and bacon under the table for Demon.

"He doesn't need that." Abby said. "He's fat enough already."

"You're not fat, are you, Demon?" Stuart said in his baby voice.

Demon wagged his nub of a tail at Stuart and pawed at his shin.

"That's not all muscle." Abby said. "Some of that is fat."

"He's not that fat." Stuart said.

Abby's eyes raised her eyes from her puzzle and met his gaze. "I can feel his sides between my calves. It's squishy fat."

Stuart smirked and patted the rott on the head. "He's a fatty lumpkin." he said.

"Our fatty lumpkin." Abby said, also smirking.

Stuart liked that. Freddie and Radar were both hers, seeing as she purchased them both before she even met him. But Demon was theirs. They both saw his picture in the local paper and went to the shelter to adopt him. Even so, Stuart was given equal "parental" rights to Abby's ferret and rabbit, though he never kept any of the animals at his apartment.

With his breakfast finished, Stuart reached under the table and carefully placed his plate on the patio floor for Demon to lick clean. On their way up, his hands found Abby's feet and rubbed the soles. Abby squirmed a bit and Stuart laughed. He hadn't forgotten she was ticklish there.

"Are you working tonight?" he asked.

Abby picked up her phone and opened her calendar. "No. But that could change."

Stuart nodded. He knew that a little too well. There's always that chance Abby will be called in on her days off. Situations can change at the last minute and someone else had to pick up the slack.

Abby didn't mind working, but she loved her days off.

"Are you going to come to the store?" Stuart asked.

"Thinking about it." Abby said with a less than subtle glance toward the closet.

"New costume?"

She smiled in a wouldn't-you-like-to-know kind of way.

"Uh oh. What'd you find this time?"

The smile widened.

"Nothing crazy, I hope."

"We're all a little crazy."

Having nothing else coming to mind in response to that, Stuart just nodded and rubbed her heels. His attention was momentarily taken away as Demon licked his lips and went to a spot in the open doorway to lay down.

"What are your plans tonight?" Abby asked him, pulling his attention away from the dog.

"It's book night." Stuart said, grimacing.

"Oh." Abby frowned.

Book night for Stuart meant a long night of recording everything he sold compared to everything in stock, followed by calculating prices and making sure everything balanced out in the end. Stuart didn't have a problem with theft, but he still couldn't bring himself to feel like a proper business owner unless he did the books. However, after dealing with his nerdy customers and running numbers, Stuart was usually worn out and just needed a good night's rest.

"Do you need help?" Abby asked.

The look on her face suggested she was only too willing to walk to the store just to assist him. Stuart felt his heart melt. How he deserved her, he didn't know. She really was the girl for him.

"Only if Aaron doesn't call you." Stuart said, casually informing her that her job was more important than helping him.

"Chances are Aaron won't need me."

"Then swing by."

"Are you coming over afterward?'

"I'll consider it. Depending on how tired I get."

She gave him a nod and returned to her puzzle while Stuart ran his hands down to her ankles.

"You better get going if you expect to open when you're supposed to." Abby said.

He knew she didn't say that to get rid of him or make him stop what he was doing. She understood punctuality was necessary for running his business, even if he was barely making enough to meet overhead.

"You're right." he said, easing her feet off his knees and getting up.

Demon jumped up and followed his male owner as Stuart took the dirty dishes to the kitchen and placed them in the sink. On his way back to Abby's room, he checked the animals' bowls to make sure they had all been fed and watered. Then, he shut the bedroom door and changed into clean clothes. Abby was in the bathroom, brushing her teeth, when he came out. After kissing her good-bye, he grabbed his bag and left.

The day passed quickly for both Abby and Stuart. Abby stayed busy with the animals—cleaning cages and playing with Demon at the dog park. Stuart was delighted to find he had received new card packs for Mystic Warlords of Ka'a. He took down old signage and put up new signs advertising their arrival. Before long, his store was full of customers wanting to buy the new packs.

Then, Abby came in. But not in costume. Everyone's heads turned in her direction, watching her as she walked in.

"Hey guys." Abby said, heading toward the back of the store where Stuart kept the Doctor Who merchandise.

"Hey, Abby." said Leonard.

Everyone looked at Leonard, then back at Abby, then over to Stuart who was still finishing up a sale, then back at Abby.

"So, is that what she looks like?" asked Dale.

"I didn't realize she was a brunette." said Captain Sweatpants.

"She looks more ginger to me." whispered Lonely Larry.

"Totally ginger." Dale said.

"I heard that!" Abby said, now staring at a weeping angel plush sitting on a shelf at precisely eye-level with her.

The guys looked at each other, then stepped closer to Abby.

"So, are you and Stuart really together?" asked Lonely Larry.

"Yes." Abby answered.

"Like, together _together_?" asked Captain Sweatpants.

"Yes."

"But you're not really serious, are you?" asked Dale.

"Serious enough."

Dale gave a short laugh, then leaned in close to Abby. "How's the sex?" he asked.

Abby frowned. "That's not a subject I want to get into."

"Guys, leave her alone." Stuart warned.

Knowing he could kick them out for the day (which he had done before when they had gotten a little rowdy with the female customers), the guys let her be. Stuart drifted over to Abby and gave her a hug and a kiss. All of which, Abby returned with full force. Actually taking her eyes off the weeping angel.

"So, how was your day, Honey?" Stuart asked.

"Uneventful. Yours?" Abby asked him.

"Eventful." He gestured to the new signs. "Got new decks for the Mystic Warlords of Ka'a. So, everyone's here adding to their collections."

Abby looked confused. "Mystic Warlords of Who-da-what-now?"

"You've never heard of it?" asked Sheldon, who happened to overhear while perusing the boxes of expansion packs now lining the shelves.

"Can't say I have." Abby told him. "Is it fun?"

"Oh, yes!"

With that, Sheldon approached Abby and proceeded to tell her the rules on how to play the game. Sadly, he didn't know Abby didn't understand spoken instructions and was better at learning a new game by watching it being played, then playing it herself. This, unfortunately, made Sheldon to become aggravated towards her. He didn't know why it was so hard for her to get the simplicity of it. However, Stuart did.

"How about you teach her how to play using a deck?" Stuart suggested.

"Great idea!" Sheldon said. He turned to Abby. "When are you available to learn a new game?"

"I won't be off work again until Monday."

"I suppose that could work."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. Just come over." Leonard said. "We should introduce you to Penny, Amy, and Bernadette."

"Okay. Do you want me to bring anything? I can make No-Bake Cookies."

The guys all looked at each other, then back at Abby.

"What's wrong?" Abby asked.

"No-Bakes have milk in them." Leonard said.

"Yes. And if you want to stay in the same room with Leonard, you're best bet is not the feed him anything with milk." Sheldon said.

"Gaseous enough to clear out a room?" Abby said, smirking. Leonard looked slightly uncomfortable at the statement until Abby tagged him in the arm with a closed fist. "I'm teasing, Leonard! Remember, I grew up with an older brother and five male cousins. Flatulence does not phase me."

"Even so . . ." Sheldon began.

"I use lactose-free milk in most of my cooking anyway." Abby said. "My stomach hasn't been handling real milk since I was in my late teens."

"That will do." Leonard said.

"Alright. I'll bring the No-Bakes." Abby said, grinning as she grabbed an adipose plush from the shelf, checked the price, and wandered back up to the register.

While that was going on, Stuart sent Raj a warning look that plainly said "Keep your hands _off_ my girlfriend" before returning to his station.

* * *

 _I'm not sure I did this right or kept anyone in character. If I'm missing something, somewhere, please let me know._


End file.
